Antidote

Chapter 49

Careful not to wake Tristan or any of the others sleeping, I get up from my seat, letting my knees gently crash onto the cold, hard floor. As surprising as it may sound, the tears don't come. Instead, a hollowed-out, empty feeling surrounds me, and I feel numb.

I think of how sweet Reese is, and how, just as she was an angel in life, she will be an angel in death as well.

"Alex," a voice says, and I turn towards the chairs to look for the source of it. To my confusion, no one is there. The others are still sprawled over the hard-seated chairs, sleeping soundly.

"Alex," the voice calls again. Trembling, I rise to my feet. "Who's there?" I call into the darkness nervously. An apparition appears before me. It's a little girl, about Reese's age. Her body is transparent and a white halo and white wings adorn her. She's wearing a white gown, one I've seen before in Brittney's closet.

The whole girl's body seems to glow with an orange-yellow light. "Alex," the voice calls again. It seems to be coming directly from the ghostly figure. I step closer. The figure beckons me to follow her. I shake my head, but even as I'm doing so, my feet are moving forward. I have no control over my own body.

I follow the little girl into the ICU and into Reese's cubicle. It's only then do I make the connection. The apparition looks like Reese would look if she were an angel, and her voice sounds like Reese's, too. This is Reese's ghost!

I shake my head, trying to rid it of the ridiculous thought. There has to be some explanation. Ghosts aren't real. You're just dreaming, I tell myself. This is just a dream.

But even as I think it, I know it's wrong. The ghost of Reese reaches out and touches my hand softly. I jump and pull my hand back. The touch of her fingers to my skin causes my spine to prickle with apprehension; The fingers are icy cold, like a popsicle that's been sitting in the freezer for two months.

"Alex," whispers the ghost. "Listen to me." It now has laid it's icy hand on the real Reese's cheek. "I knew I was going to die." A breath of air whooshes out of my lungs. Reese knew? How could she have possibly known she was going to die? It's impossible.

Reese's spirit continues talking in first person, and I know I'm seeing the heart of Reese in her ghost. The girl lying on the hospital bed is simply the leftover body. Her spirit is in the apparition before me, so I know that what it says is true, because it's what Reese would've told me if she could.

The ghost speaks again, as though she could hear my thoughts. "It's true. I had a premonition one night. It led me to believe that I was going to die. But that wasn't the reason I had it. The reason was because a spirit granted me a mission. In the premonition, the spirit showed a picture of you and said we'd meet soon and that you were hurting. It told me that my mission was to get you to stop hurting. To make you see yourself in the same light everyone around you does."

Now, that does take my breath away. Reese is five years old, for Christ's sake! How in the world could a child of only five years be intelligent enough to receive a spirit message?

The ghost continues to speak. "I was chosen to receive the message from the spirits because I have a psychic power that allows me to connect to them. I was the only one who could. And that was what made me so determined to succeed at my mission."

This answers my question, but I have so many more. "I had a spirit helper, the way the old Indians did. My spirit helper was a fierce palomino mare who came to me twice during dreams to instruct me on how to turn you." This does surprise me! I'd always believed in the old Indian magics, but never had I ever experienced or met someone who had experienced it.

The figure moves closer to me and continues with her speech. "During your hospital stay, Tristan and your mother thought I was sleeping. In reality, I was not. I was in a trance, asking for guidance from my spirit helper and praying for your rebirth."

A startled gasp escapes my lungs, but that's all I have time to do before the ghost begins to speak again. "Alex, I have come to you this night to finish my mission. I have already helped you by giving you my brother, who has made you very happy. But I know that until you realize how much of a fighter you are, things will not improve for you." I listen carefully.

"You have done many things that some people will never do and could never do. You have been through hell and back, but you never collapsed into the fire. You have a will to live, Alex. You have a fighting instinct, and you never give up. Whether you realize it or not, you are a fighter. You fight against anything and anyone you're set up against, and you never back down. That's a quality that is going to get you through life."

I honestly can't believe my ears. A fighter? As if! "Alex, another thing you are is a survivor. You've done it many times, and you'll do it over again. I know for a fact that my brother will not leave you. He can't. He loves you. You just have to learn to trust that love always survives."

"You are strong and brave, Alex. You're a hero, a role model to people out there who are struggling with themselves. You've learned to just be you, and there are so many others exactly like you. You inspire them. They look up to you and they respect you. I respect you. And I'm proud of you. I'm proud of you for finding your inner trust and using it to put your faith in Tristan. I believe in you. I believe that you're going to overcome your challenges as they come, and I believe that you will once recognize yourself for who you are."

"That is my ultimate wish for you, for you to realize who you truly are. And who you truly are is this: A warrior. You are a warrior, Alex Foster. A survivor. A fighter. And I admire you for that. And it is my sincere wish that, one day, you will come to realize how strong you are, and use that knowledge to help others see themselves in the same light."

"Goodbye, Alex. Stay strong."

I watch in rapt amazement as the ghost of Reese slowly evaporates into thin air. A calmness washes over me, and, deep down in my heart, I know that every single word she just said is the truth. Peace envelops my mind and heart for the first time in two years.

Looking at Reese's still, cold body, I know exactly what's going to happen next, and it doesn't scare me. I shout for a nurse and exit Reese's cubicle to get the others.

They all crowd around me. Reese's heart monitor takes a large drop, and her breath becomes shallow. I expect the nurse to do something, but she seems to understand and doesn't. We all watch as the jagged peaks flatten out into a straight line, and the heart monitor lets out a piercing whine. Reese's body becomes still.

The others gather around one another, crying and hugging and cussing. I just stand still, at the lifeless form on the bed before me. But I don't cry. I don't feel sadness at all. Instead, I feel an overwhelming calm.

Reese's heart and mind are resting in peace, and I can almost see the angels carrying her spirit to heaven.

Despite her untimely death, I feel myself letting go. My heart and mind are finally at peace, and I have a true angel to thank for that.

AN: Bet you didn't see that coming, did ya? To be honest, I didn't either. I didn't know I would write it until I wrote it. And, with that, I'd like to officially announce that this is the end of this book. Tomorrow or sometime later today, I will post a new epilogue, and that will be the official ending to Antidote. I just think this is a really good spot to end it. So, I'm ending it, don't kill me please. Comment below how you liked my ending, and don't forget to vote!

Next update: Tomorrow or later today

All my love,

Em